


Rumour Has it

by givemeyoursmile



Category: Johnny's Entertainment, Sexy Zone
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-08-20
Updated: 2014-08-20
Packaged: 2018-02-13 23:40:08
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,755
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2169747
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/givemeyoursmile/pseuds/givemeyoursmile
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Happy birthday to <a class="i-ljuser-profile" href="http://ailette.livejournal.com/profile"><img class="i-ljuser-userhead"/></a><a class="i-ljuser-username" href="http://ailette.livejournal.com/"></a><b>ailette</b>, one of my favourite people ever ♥♥♥ I’m really glad to have gotten to know you and that we became friends! Hope I did justice to your prompt and that you like it~ ♥</p>
    </blockquote>





	Rumour Has it

**Author's Note:**

> Happy birthday to [](http://ailette.livejournal.com/profile)[](http://ailette.livejournal.com/)**ailette** , one of my favourite people ever ♥♥♥ I’m really glad to have gotten to know you and that we became friends! Hope I did justice to your prompt and that you like it~ ♥

“He was here looking for you again.” Yugo leans over his desk and whispers when Kento slinks back into his seat just as the bell rings, signalling the end of their lunch break. “Kikuchi-kun.”

Ignoring the tightening of his heart at the mention of Fuma’s name, Kento plasters a smile on his face. “I see.”

“You can’t hide from him forever, you know.” Kento knows Yugo has more to say, but is secretly relieved that he’s forced to stop midway when the teacher enters the classroom and requests that they take their seats. Yugo reaches out and pats his shoulder gently. “If you need someone to talk to, I’ll always be here.”

“Thanks.” Kento nods, turning back to face the front of the classroom and takes out his books in preparation for the lesson. He doesn’t mention what he’s grateful to Yugo for, whether it’s for informing him, for covering for him or simply for the offer of a listening ear, since he’s not exactly sure himself.

\---

Their first lunch break together was spent in the nurse’s office.

Engrossed in his own thoughts, Kento had wandered too close to the basketball court when he was hit on the head by a stray basketball. He had fallen to the ground and was trying to regain his bearings when the boy who had thrown the ball ran up to him with a guilty look on his face. Looking extremely apologetic, he wordlessly stuck out his hand to help Kento up. Grabbing the boy’s hand to pull himself up, Kento had thanked him, dusted off his pants and was about to leave when with a voice gruffer than expected, the boy stopped him to mention that he should head to the nurse’s office for a check up. Smiling as brightly as possible with the side of his head still throbbing slightly, Kento had tried to assure him that he was fine really, but at his insistence, he found himself sitting in the nurse’s office, the boy hovering close to him. It was only when the school nurse declared that Kento seemed fine but that he should stay in the nurse’s office in the meantime for observation just in case, that the boy let a small smile of relief flash across his face and introduced himself as Kikuchi Fuma.

.

Jogging up to the picnic bench, Kento plonks the bag with his lunch box on the table and climbs in to sit opposite Fuma, who’s slumped across the table. “Nakajima, you’re slow. I’m starving.” Fuma’s tone is accusatory and he lifts his head to glare at Kento.

“Sorry, the teacher wouldn’t let us go until all of us could solve the question.” Kento apologises, slightly out of breath. Ignoring Fuma’s glare, he removes his lunch box from the bag and grasping his chopsticks in his hands, he mumbles a quiet いただきます before starting to eat.

“You need to compensate me.” Fuma demands and reaches out to pinch a piece of meat from Kento’s lunch box, but his actions are too slow and Kento calmly swats his hand away. Biting on his own chopsticks, Kento reaches into the bag and pulls out a spare pair of chopsticks. “Use this. I don’t want your dirty hands all over my food.”

“How thoughtful of you!” Fuma exclaims happily, knowing that Kento’s words have no malicious intent. Grinning and using the pair of chopsticks that Kento had passed to him, he steals the piece of meat and pops it into his mouth, then closes his eyes and letting out a moan of satisfaction. “This is so much better than bread.”

Kento shakes his head in exasperation but is unable to keep the smile off his face. “Eat your bread and stop stealing my food.” He complains with a slight whine and pulls his lunch box out of Fuma’s reach to continue eating at an angle but eventually gives in when Fuma pouts at him pitifully. They continue eating in silence, with Fuma alternating between bites from his bread and from Kento’s lunch box.

“Hey.” Tapping his chopsticks against his lips, Kento chews on his food thoughtfully. “I’ve always wondered… You seem really popular in school so shouldn’t you have a lot of friends?”

Fuma’s eyes light up with amusement at Kento’s mention of his popularity but when he tries to reply, his mouth is still full of food and all that comes out is a muffled agreement.

“Then why do you choose to spend your lunch breaks with me?” Putting his chopsticks down, Kento props his chin up with one hand to look at Fuma curiously.

As Fuma puts his hand up and raises a finger to tell Kento to give him a moment, Kento straightens his back into a proper sitting posture, expecting Fuma to give him a serious answer. Fuma struggles to hurriedly swallow the last bit of food before turning back to Kento, eyes shining with mirth and lips tugging up into a smirk. “You have the best lunches.” He teases, prompting Kento to roll his eyes and playfully whack him on the head.

.

Kento had spent days agonising over why his heart skips a beat every time their fingers brush against each other, why he sees Fuma’s soft, shy smile every time he closes his eyes, why he tries so hard to make Fuma laugh. He had just come to the inevitable conclusion that he is in love with Kikuchi Fuma when the rumours started, spreading like wildfire over a few days. Guessing that they were started by the close friends of a girl he had rejected some time back, he had tried to ignore them, hoping that people would have more sense than to believe such rumours but things were getting out of hand.

Passing by the sinks by the sports compound, Kento stops in his tracks when he hears Fuma’s name. “... think Fuma has been acting all weird lately? Especially since he got to know that Nakajima dude.”

“Isn’t he expected to take over as captain next year? I was going to cast my vote for him but now with all this…”

Not wanting to hear any more of the conversation between the two basketball players, Kento walks away with a sinking heart. He is startled out of his thoughts when an arm is slung around his neck and his heartbeat increases rapidly when he feels a warm body pressed up against his side. “Your face will be frozen in place if you keep frowning like that.” Fuma chuckles and uses his finger to flick Kento’s forehead where his eyebrows are scrunched up.

“You’re all sweaty.” Kento wrinkles his nose and glancing back towards the sinks, he tries to casually shrug off Fuma’s arm, but completely misses the slight frown on Fuma’s face when Fuma notices the subtle distance that he has placed between them. “Shouldn’t you be at practice?”

“Trying to chase me away?” Fuma asks, laughing when Kento childishly pulls a face at him. “I’ll catch you at lunch tomorrow?”

Nodding slowly, Kento bids Fuma goodbye with a tight smile and watches silently as Fuma runs off to join his teammates on the basketball court.

\---

After parting ways with his friends at the crossroads, Kento starts to head towards the station when he hears someone calling his name. Looking around, he sees a figure approaching from distance, waving and jogging to catch up with him. “Nakajima-kun!”

“Matsu...mura-kun?” Kento inquires hesitantly. He had seen Matsumura around in school a few times, and knows that he and Tanaka are close friends of Fuma’s who are always joking and messing around. He loved watching Fuma interact with his friends; his expressions during those times unguarded, happy. Even though he knows perfectly well why Matsumura is looking for him, he smiles weakly at him and asks, “What’s up?”

“I need to seek your advice about something.” Matsumura replies, but doesn’t go into detail yet as he turns and walks towards the station. Falling in step beside him, Kento wonders whether his intuition was wrong, that maybe Matsumura wants to ask him about entrance examinations or schoolwork. They walk shoulder-to-shoulder in silence for awhile until Matsumura speaks up. “That guy, he has changed.”

Kento continues walking, eyes trained on the road ahead of them. Perhaps sensing that he would not be getting a reply, Matsumura carries on. “Although he makes friends easily and people naturally gravitate around him, he had always been guarded and wouldn’t let people get too close to him. But lately, he has become more open, more willing to share his thoughts. Even Juri has realised this too and that guy is really oblivious most of the time.” Matsumura smiles, eyes soft at the thought and Kento finds himself thinking that the three friends must have a really good relationship, but Matsumura’s expression turns solemn again. “These days, he still jokes and talks to us, acting like everything is normal. But he hasn’t truly smiled since then. Since you started avoiding him.”

.

Lying in bed with the covers drawn up to his chin, Kento stares at the ceiling and muses over his conversation with Matsumura. It has been more than a week since they last spoke to each other. Knowing that Fuma would look for him if he didn’t turn up at their usual spot during lunch breaks for a couple of days, Kento had taken to leaving the classroom once the bell rings, only returning seconds before class started again. These days, he spent most of his lunch breaks hiding in the music room, seeking solace in the peaceful and quiet surroundings. When his phone suddenly vibrates and lights up, illuminating the dark room with a soft glow, he reaches over to grab his phone from the bedside stand, absently noticing that it’s already past midnight and he had been trying to fall asleep for over an hour to no avail.

_Unread mails - From Kikuchi Fuma_

Kento knows Fuma had been sending him mails almost everyday, sometimes more than one a day. He had been putting off reading them, and had, at one point, contemplated deleting them without reading but couldn’t bring himself to hit the delete button. Staring at the unread mails and sighing as he feels the emotional strain of the past few days setting in, he finally gives in.

_“Why didn’t you tell me you weren’t coming to school today? Do you know how long I waited for you? ヽ(#`Д´)ﾉ”_

_“Did something happen? Why aren’t you replying my mails?”_

_“I saw you in school today… Are you avoiding me?”_

_“Did I do something wrong?”_

_“Reply me dammit!”_

After he reads the last mail that he just received, Kento buries his head in his pillow to muffle the sobs that are threatening to escape. _I’m sorry._

.

“Nakajima.” Kento hears a voice call out to him just as he steps out of the school gate; the familiar figure is leaning against a nearby tree, evidently waiting for him. Fuma. Gritting his teeth, Kento adamantly ignores him and weaving his way around the rest of the students, he tries to hurry away when Fuma reaches out to grab him by the wrist and pull him aside. He doesn’t miss the glances that are cast their way, the hushed voices that are increasing in volume, the fingers that are pointing towards them. Glancing worriedly between the crowd of students and Fuma, Kento gathers his courage and steeling himself, he shakes off Fuma’s grip, perhaps with more force than necessary, causing Fuma to frown at this action.

“What do you want?” Kento asks, schooling his expression into one of nonchalance but resolutely refusing to meet Fuma’s eyes.

“We need to talk.” Fuma’s tone is gruff and he stalks off in the direction of the nearest park. After a few moments of consideration, Kento quietly follows after him. They continue in silence, Fuma walking in front and Kento following a few steps behind, gripping tightly onto the straps of his bag when Fuma stops and turns around to face him. “Answer me.”

Kento manages to stop just in time, narrowly avoiding bumping right into Fuma. “About what?”

“Did I do something wrong?” Fuma looks up from the ground to look into Kento’s eyes, gaze boring into him.

“No!” Kento denies, averting his eyes to focus on the trees in the distance. “You didn’t do anything wrong.”

Taking a deep breath, Fuma shoves his hands into his pockets. “Then why have you been avoiding me?” Kento can tell that Fuma is trying his best to keep a neutral tone but he feel a tinge of guilt as he senses hurt in his voice.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Kento fidgets uncomfortably under Fuma’s unwavering gaze as he tries to stall for time, having decided to stick by his decision; what Fuma doesn’t know won’t hurt him. “I’ve just been really busy lately?” It sounds like a lame excuse even to his own ears but it’s all he can come up with at the moment.

“And you expect me to believe that?” Kento feels his heart clench at the sound of Fuma’s mirthless laugh and as he struggles to find words to explain himself, Fuma speaks again in a tight voice. “Does this have anything to do with the rumours about us?”

Seeing Kento’s eyes widen with shock, Fuma’s shoulders slump and his tone softens. “So it does.”

“How do you know about the rumours?” Kento asks, alarmed. “You weren’t supposed to know!”

Fuma smiles wryly. “Did you really think I wouldn’t have heard anything about it?”

Sighing, Kento crosses his arms in front of his chest as he feels the fight draining out of him, knowing that he cannot hide things from Fuma any longer. “I don’t want you to get a bad reputation because of me.” Kento’s voice is akin to a whisper, and he absently rubs his arms to chase away the cold.

“What about yours?”

Even though he had no idea how Fuma would react, his reply still took him by surprise. “Eh?” Kento asks, puzzled. “What about mine?”

Fuma sighs at Kento’s cluelessness. “What about your reputation?”

Kento smiles wanly; although Fuma may not seem like such a person, he has always been very considerate of others’ feelings. “My reputation doesn’t matter. I’m graduating soon anyway. But you still have more than a year left in this school, I don’t want the rest of your days here to be hell because of me. So I...”

“I don’t care.” Fuma shrugs, interrupting Kento in the middle of his sentence.

“But I do!” Kento finds himself getting increasingly upset by Fuma’s nonchalant attitude and he blinks rapidly to stop the tears that are threatening to well up in his eyes. “Don’t you see the consequences that all this will have on you?”

“Why do you care?” Fuma looks genuinely baffled at Kento’s vehemence. “It doesn’t bother me.”

Looking straight into Fuma’s eyes, Kento smiles defeatedly. “Because I like you, that’s why.” Kento confesses in a whisper as he tiptoes and plants a light peck on his lips. “You can hate me now. Goodbye.” Wiping away the stray tears that have rolled down his cheek, Kento takes a deep breath and straightens his shoulders, before turning on his heels to walk away, out of Fuma’s life forever. Cursing himself for letting his feelings ruin their friendship, Kento doesn’t make it very far before he is enveloped from the back by a pair of strong arms.

“Why should I hate you?” Fuma says in a low voice, resting his chin in the nook between Kento’s neck and shoulder, breath tickling the shell of his ear.

The moment Kento regains his senses, he struggles out of Fuma’s embrace. “What are you doing?” He hisses at Fuma, eyes darting around anxiously. “People will see!”

Reaching out to grip Kento’s shoulders with both hands, Fuma makes Kento turn toward him and wraps one arm around his waist to draw him closer. “Showing you that I like you too.” Kento doesn’t miss how Fuma’s cheeks immediately turn dark pink with that statement but he can only look at Fuma with wide eyes as he registers that Fuma is confessing to him. “I don’t care about what other people think." Fuma says mildly as he lets a soft smile slowly take over his features. Using his other hand to tilt Kento’s chin upwards, he runs a thumb over Kento’s slightly parted lips before leaning forward to capture them in a kiss.


End file.
